


My Hero

by purplewhiteandgold



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: 5+1, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:06:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23392972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purplewhiteandgold/pseuds/purplewhiteandgold
Summary: Ladybug and Chat Noir always need each other, whether in or out of the suits.Or in other words, 5 times Marinette was Adrien’s hero + 1 time he promised to be a hero.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 12
Kudos: 160
Collections: THEME:  Hero





	My Hero

**1.**

_Stupid, stupid, you should have realized she was heading in the same direction as you and_ **_not_ ** _ended up detransforming in the same room as her!_

Well, there was nothing he could do now. Ladybug and Chat Noir made eye contact in the same moment their transformations faded, leaving Marinette and Adrien behind and absolutely horrified.

They were silent; not even their kwamis made a sound, only slipping out of view as soon as they appeared. The reason for this quickly became clear as footsteps were heard approaching the classroom they were in.

Adrien froze. _How are we going to get out of this?_ He tried to think, but Marinette was faster.

“Quick!” She grabbed his hand and dragged him to the back corner of the room, crouching down behind a desk and bringing him with her. “Stay down and don’t make a sound.”

_What?_ But he didn’t question her; she _was_ Ladybug, after all, and he definitely had experience with Ladybug’s plans and knew better than to doubt them.

So he stayed silent as the door creaked open and footsteps announced a new presence in the room. After a few moments, a voice spoke up.

“Marinette? Are you in here?”

Marinette’s eyes sparked as she recognized Alya’s voice. Peering over the table, she questioned, “Is the akuma gone yet?”

Her footsteps came closer. “Yeah, Ladybug and Chat Noir defeated it a couple minutes ago, you can stop hiding now. Class will probably be starting in a few minutes and- _Adrien_?”

He jumped as she saw him, turning to see her gaping at the two of them. Recovering quickly, she grinned at them, a strange look in her eyes. “How did you and Marinette end up here together?”

Marinette yelped, stumbling over her words before responding, “It’s not like _that_ , Alya! He was nearby when the akuma first attacked, and I couldn’t just abandon him with it being so close by!”

Adrien quickly latched onto her story, understanding what she was trying to say. “Yeah, Marinette dragged me in here just before the akuma found me and helped me hide out until it was defeated. I’m safe thanks to her.” He turned to her, noting her red and embarrassed face as he smiled at her. “She’s my hero.”

Her blush deepened as she processed the true meaning behind his words, knowing that he wasn’t only talking about this particular incident.

“Well, like I said, class is going to start again soon, you’d better come quick before you miss too much.”

He smiled at Alya. “We’ll be back soon. But first-” he glanced at Marinette. “I think I dropped some things out of my bag on our rush in here. Would you help me find them?”

“O-of course! Don’t worry about us, Alya, we won’t be late.”

The other girl nodded, shooting Marinette an interesting look before walking out, shutting the door behind her.

The moment the door was closed, they both let out identical sighs of relief. Adrien rested his hand on his neck, glancing at Marinette awkwardly. “That was too close for comfort.”

“Tell me about it. Although we didn’t manage to keep…” She trailed off, gesturing between the two of them.

“Normally, I’d be worried about that, but given how close we came to almost having Alya find out, I’m more relieved than anything.”

She laughed weakly. “Tell me about it. That could have gone so much worse, and I should be concerned about how this will change things, but right now I’m just too shocked to really process what just happened.”

“That was a really good idea back there, I thought for sure someone was going to walk in and immediately suspect something about us, but that was a great cover story.”

A comfortable silence fell over them as they shared a soft smile. Finally, Adrien stood.

“Well, we’d better get to class before people wonder where we are. Are you coming, or do you need some time to process on your own?”

She looked at her backpack, which, in their hurry to hide, had tipped its contents onto the floor. “Give me a couple minutes to organize my stuff a bit, and I’ll follow you soon.”

He nodded and turned toward the door, but before walking away, he glanced back at her.

“I meant what I said, you know.”

She looked up from her bag, a confused look in her eyes.

“You are my hero, both now and every time we work side by side.” He smiled gently. “I can always count on you to watch my back, no matter what, milady.”

With that, he turned to walk out, almost leaving the room when he heard her voice.

“Adrien…”

He hesitated in the doorway, glancing back at her.

“So… oh gosh this is _not_ the time and place for this but… it’s pretty clear that Chat Noir has feelings for Ladybug, and I was wondering…”

Adrien raised an eyebrow. This sounded like it was going to be an interesting conversation.

* * *

**2.**

“What is it with you and _always_ being around when akumas attack?”

Adrien grinned sheepishly, clinging tighter to Ladybug as they swung through the city. “I guess I’m just unlucky? I don’t know, there’s constantly people who are upset at my father, so maybe they decide to come after me trying to get to him.”

She frowned slightly, a look of concentration etched onto her face. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say your father was in the middle of all these akumas, with how often he upsets someone who almost immediately gets akumatized.”

Adrien winced. “Sorry about this whole mess.”

Ladybug glanced at him, her focused expression giving way to shock. “Oh no, Adrien, you’ve done nothing wrong! It’s just that I’m a little concerned that if this keeps happening, someone might connect me taking you to safety to when Chat Noir shows up to the fight. Once or twice might be brushed off as a coincidence, but any more could get people suspicious.”

They landed on a rooftop a few blocks away from the akuma, where Ladybug carefully set Adrien down. “I’d say give it a minute or two before coming, just to make sure no one questions anything. But don’t wait _too_ long.”

“I’ll be sure to.” Bending over, he lays a swift kiss on the back of her hand. “It’s rude to keep a lady waiting, and I would hate to do that.”

A few weeks ago, she might have brushed off his affection or been reduced to a blushing mess, depending on whether or not he was transformed. Now, however, she simply rolled her eyes fondly as she tapped his nose with her finger. “My kitty, such a gentleman.”

“But of course. It would be horrible of me to not thank my hero for what she’s done for me. Or to not pay her back in some way.” He tapped his chin contemplatively. “Dinner tonight at my place? Afterwards, I could try beating you at Ultimate Mega Strike.”

She laughed pleasantly. “In your dreams, Adrien.”

* * *

**3.**

Numb.

He should have been feeling something, _anything_. But all that was left was a gaping hole of disbelief and shock. The only thing he was aware of was the arm wrapped around his waist and Ladybug sitting beside him.

They sat high on the rooftops, far out of sight and away from people. People who were happy and celebrating when they had no idea what he’d lost.

He could tell she was trying to find something to say, but honestly, what even _could_ she say after something like _this_? After finding out his father was-

“Chat, I-” She hesitated, wrapping her arm tighter around him, holding him closer. “I can’t even imagine what you’re feeling right now, but… I’m here for you.”

Reaching out, she turned his face toward hers and settled her forehead against his, looking him straight in the eyes. Her gaze, soft and gentle, tenderly broke down his walls, and suddenly the weight of _everything_ came crashing down over him, and he quickly found himself wrapped in Ladybug’s arms and weeping desperately.  
  


He wasn’t sure how long they sat there before Chat managed to form coherent words again.

“Thank you, Ladybug. I-I don’t think I could do this without you.” He clings to her, tears falling slowly. “You’re my hero, Marinette, and I love you so much.”

She tightens his hold on him and begins gently combing her hands through his hair. “I’ll be here. I promise.”

* * *

**4.**

It should have been getting easier. He should have been able to move on.

Unfortunately, when the identity of the supervillain tormenting the entire city gets revealed, everyone else wants to keep talking about it, and no one _lets_ him move on from it.

Adrien was constantly being pestered by practically _everyone_ \- from news reporters to random people off the street who happened to recognize him as Hawkmoth’s son.

Didn’t they realize what he was going through? Did they even stop to consider that maybe this wasn’t the easiest thing for him to deal with?

Despite all his struggles, it was still ingrained in him to be polite and respectful in public, especially to reporters, even when he wants to walk away and leave it all behind.

Marinette, however, has no such reservations.

Her constant presence was probably stirring up rumors about how deep her involvement with his family was, but she didn’t seem to care. She didn’t hesitate to shoo away cameras or microphones or random people passing by if they kept trying to get information out of Adrien when it was clear that he didn’t want to talk to them.

One evening, sitting together at Marinette’s house, Adrien brought it up.

“You know people are going to be talking about you too now that you’re so involved with all this.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Adrien, in case you haven’t noticed, we’re dating. People have been talking about me, and they’re going to keep talking about me.”

“Yes, but…” He hesitated, trying to come up with the right words. “Before it was just that people were curious about us. People have been saying that I might have been involved with what my father was doing, now they might wonder if you were involved with it, and I don’t want you to be accused of anyth-”

“ _Adrien_.” The emotion in her voice cut him off. “You didn’t get a choice in whether you were involved in this, and you got dragged into this whole mess that your father created. You don’t deserve to deal with this alone.” She shrugged in an unbothered manner. “Honestly, people are going to talk about me whether I stand with you or not. And I’d rather you not have to go through this without someone by your side.” She smiled gently. “I care about you too much for that.”

A warm feeling blossomed in his chest and spread through him as he processed her words. Reaching for her hand, softly and gently, he laid a kiss on the back of her hand.

“Milady, have I ever told you that you’re my hero?”

She smirked. “All the time, kitty.”

* * *

**5.**

He thought he was over it. He thought he’d moved on. It’d been _years_ , he should have healed by now.

But those two little lines had shattered every bit of confidence he had.

Now he was sitting on the edge of their bed, staring at nothing as he struggled to cope.

He didn’t realize she had walked in until he felt the bed dip next to him as she sat, until her hand entwined with his.

“Adrien, I can tell something’s wrong.”

Eyes downcast, he catches sight of her stomach. There’s no visible bump now, but one will come fairly soon.

_I can’t, I can’t do this._

He tried to smile. He doesn’t look at her; he never could lie to her face. “Everything’s fine, I’m just a bit… shocked, that’s all.”

She said nothing, only reaching out to cup his cheek with her palm and turn his face toward hers, gripping his hand tighter as his eyes met hers.

She’s clearly worried; they’ve been partners too long for her to not know exactly how he tries to hide his feelings, and how to get him to open up.

“Please, Adrien… talk to me. We can work this out.”

He felt his resolve crumbling, his walls cracking.

He never was good at keeping her out.

“I can’t…”

She stays silent, letting him process at his own pace.

“I can’t… be a father. I can’t-” He choked on a sob. “I can’t, I can’t become just like him!”

All the pain, all the heartache, came flooding back. Fears, uncertainties, doubts; all of them came to the surface as he _broke_. She embraced him fully as he began to sob, pain in his every word.

“I-I can’t _do_ it Marinette! I would end up exactly like _him_ , and I just _can’t_ , I can’t do that to- to a _child_ , to my _own child_ ! I would _ruin_ my _own child_ , Marinette, I can’t, I just _can’t_ -”

His words dissolved into incoherent sobs, and she began to comb her fingers through his hair in an attempt at comfort. For a long time, they sat there, his tears eventually fading into numbness as his emotions ran dry, until he was left only sniffling occasionally. Marinette leaned close and whispered softly into his ear.

“Adrien, I know that this has been hurting you for years, and that I certainly don’t expect you to move on from what he did so easily. But I promise you this-” she murmured, turned to look him straight in the eyes, “- _you are not him._ ”

She continued to stroke his hair. “I know that I can’t get rid of all of your fears in just one night, but I promise you, I will _never_ leave you to deal with this alone. No matter what you’re going through, _I will not leave you._ I will _never_ abandon you. Whatever you need from me, I will do it. I will do whatever it takes to prove to you that you will be _so much_ a better father- a better _dad_ \- than he was.

“I know it already, Adrien. And I want you to know it too.”

He said nothing, but simply tightened his hold around her as the tears began to flow again.

After a few moments, he spoke up. “You’re my hero, Marinette.” He turned, nuzzling her cheek before placing a soft kiss on her lips. “I hope you know that.”

* * *

**+1**

The room was quiet; Marinette had fallen asleep some time ago, leaving Adrien alone with his thoughts.

His thoughts, and, of course, little Hugo.

The baby was a lot quieter and more calm than he would’ve imagined, although all the doctors and nurses said that he wouldn’t be thinking that over the next few months. But for now, Hugo was fast asleep in his father’s arms as Adrien looked on with pride and affection shining in his eyes.

One of his arms was loose from the blanket he was swaddled in, and Adrien, ever so gently, slipped his finger into Hugo’s hand, smiling gently as the little boy clung to it, even in sleep.

“Hey.” He shook his finger gently, jostling Hugo’s arm ever so slightly. “Nice to meet you, I’m Adrien. I’m your f- I’m your dad.

“I’m also-” he laughs awkwardly. “Well, I’m a cat themed superhero that watches over the city and keeps everyone safe.

“I’m one of Paris’ heroes, but… I’d like to be your hero too.”

His gaze drifted upwards to the wall ahead of him, lost in thought. “So many kids look up to their dad, and are proud of him, and…” He trailed off, hesitating before he continued quietly. “I’m gonna be honest here, I’m probably gonna mess up at this whole ‘parenting’ thing. A lot. But I promise you that I will love you, and I will make sure you _know_ that you’re loved.” He glanced down at the child in his arms, a comforting warmth filling his chest. “I’m going to make sure you get what I didn’t. I’m going to do right by you.”

At that moment, Hugo began to stir, tightening his grip on Adrien’s finger as he felt tears begin to fall.

“I promise.”


End file.
